Healthy Food Recipes: berries

Showing posts with label berries. Show all posts

Happy Halloween peeps! Everyone knows that Halloween means you're in for a sugar overload. If your a mom you know that the entire month of October means sugar overload central, prepare the insulin for a diabetic coma any second sort of situation. Seriously. I volunteered at my 3rd graders Halloween party (still amazed someone hasn't petitioned, rallied and picketed that it be renamed "Fall Harvest Festivities Celebrations") and the amount of cookies, cupcakes, candies, fruit punch and crackers that were involved made me cringe.

Why people? Why must Halloween be associated with buckets or pillowcases full of sugar? Every year I struggle with either not passing out anything at all (which I just can't bring myself to do) or handing out prizes and toys which I tried one year and got egged for the trouble. Damn teenagers.

Which coincidentally brings me to cookies. Obviously. Am I a hypocrite? Possibly, but I'm talking macaroons people. Yes, coconut is a sugar, natural or not. I've debated this to death and am standing my ground that...

a. Yes, sugar is sugar but all things in moderation.
b. Not all sugar is created equal, natural is better than processed.
and
c. I like coconut so who gives a crap.

Creepy, [naturally] sweetened cookies.

Berries + Coconut + Bananas & Chocolate = ?

Deliciously spooky monster eyeballs of course! Frieking out your little ones is just an added bonus.

These come together in minutes, literally. Confession: I am not the worlds greatest baker. Anything involving sifting, fluffing, or basically measuring precisely quite frankly puts me off.

These macaroons I made with ease with the help of my 4 year old, who oddly enough 'loooooveees' to bake.

You could use marshmallows which honestly would probably hold their shape and color better than these bananas did but I wasn't going for show quality here.

I used a bigger, restaurant type straw to punch holes in the center of the bananas so that the

chocolate pieces would stay put. I used chocolate covered Acai berries to put in the middle but

any type of small chocolate candy will work.

Recipe from Leanne at Healthful Pursuit

PREP TIME 15 MINUTES BAKE TIME 30 MINUTES YIELDS 24 COOKIES

Ingredients

2 teaspoon freshly ground chia seeds3 tablespoons water1 cup frozen mixed berries1 tablespoon honey½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1½ cups shredded unsweetened coconut1 banana, sliced with holes punched into the middle of each slicechocolate covered Acai berries or other chocolate pieces

Instructions

Combine chia and water in a small dish and set aside.
Preheat oven to 300F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicon baking mat. Set aside.
Add mixed berries, honey, and extracts to a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Begin to stir constantly until liquid reduces to half and it fairy thick but not syrupy. Remove and place in a medium-sized bowl.
Add chia mixture. Add coconut and mix with a spoon until it’s completely coated.
Place tablespoon amounts in the palm of your hand and work into circles. Press down to make into a coin shape and place on the prepared baking sheet.
Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes.
Remove from the oven and place banana and chocolate piece on top.
Return to the oven and cook for 2-3 minutes.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before removing from the cookie sheet and placing on a cooling rack.

Monster Eyeballs! {Purple Berry Macaroons}

Posted by admin

Creepy, [naturally] sweetened cookies.

Berries + Coconut + Bananas & Chocolate = ?

Deliciously spooky monster eyeballs of course! Frieking out your little ones is just an added bonus.

These come together in minutes, literally. Confession: I am not the worlds greatest baker. Anything involving sifting, fluffing, or basically measuring precisely quite frankly puts me off.

These macaroons I made with ease with the help of my 4 year old, who oddly enough 'loooooveees' to bake.

You could use marshmallows which honestly would probably hold their shape and color better than these bananas did but I wasn't going for show quality here.

I used a bigger, restaurant type straw to punch holes in the center of the bananas so that the

chocolate pieces would stay put. I used chocolate covered Acai berries to put in the middle but

any type of small chocolate candy will work.

Recipe from Leanne at Healthful Pursuit

PREP TIME 15 MINUTES BAKE TIME 30 MINUTES YIELDS 24 COOKIES

Ingredients

2 teaspoon freshly ground chia seeds3 tablespoons water1 cup frozen mixed berries1 tablespoon honey½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1½ cups shredded unsweetened coconut1 banana, sliced with holes punched into the middle of each slicechocolate covered Acai berries or other chocolate pieces

Instructions

Combine chia and water in a small dish and set aside.
Preheat oven to 300F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicon baking mat. Set aside.
Add mixed berries, honey, and extracts to a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Begin to stir constantly until liquid reduces to half and it fairy thick but not syrupy. Remove and place in a medium-sized bowl.
Add chia mixture. Add coconut and mix with a spoon until it’s completely coated.
Place tablespoon amounts in the palm of your hand and work into circles. Press down to make into a coin shape and place on the prepared baking sheet.
Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes.
Remove from the oven and place banana and chocolate piece on top.
Return to the oven and cook for 2-3 minutes.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before removing from the cookie sheet and placing on a cooling rack.

It pains me to finally get around to posting this recipe at the very end of summer. I hope it doesn't get skipped over by people who are over seeing peach recipes. My mom made this for us a couple of times while she was living here with us and I've made it twice with the intent of getting some great pic's of the finished product so I can share it with all of you. Unfortunately, this is one of those recipes that doesn't last long enough for me to set it on the counter and take pictures of it.

I could blame it completely on my 4 hungry children but in all honesty, the smell is just so divine that I can't help but scoop out seeping hot spoonfuls of freshly baked peaches and oozy blackberries into my dish as soon as it's out of the oven.

My mom's recipe calls this "Lazy Peach Pie" but it's really more of a cobbler I think. Whatever you call it, the preparation is so crazy simple that even I don't mind baking it for a last minute delicious dessert. Even though peaches are a summer fruit, you can really stick to the theme of being 'Lazy' and buy frozen or even canned peaches to throw into this pie during the Fall and Winter months. I can just picture cuddling in a thick quilt with a piping hot bowl of this pie with a bit of cream poured over top.

Making the batter is as simple as 1...2....3.

Then, fold in your peaches be they fresh, frozen or canned.

Pour into your baking dish.

Sprinkle some black berries over the top. I had about twice this much before a very curious 2 year old grabbed the cup of berries sitting on the counter and dumped half of them on the floor.

Sabotage I tell you!

Bake for 45 minutes and enjoy the smell.

RECIPE FOR LAZY BLACK BERRY-PEACH PIE

SERVES 6 TIME 1 HOUR

You Will Need:

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup turbinado (raw) sugar
1 cup flour, preferably white, whole wheat
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon real vanilla
1 cup milk
2 cups fruit

Directions:

Cream butter and sugar. Sift together dry ingredients, add alternately with milk to butter mixture.
Fold in fruit. Pour into baking dish. Top with berries.
Bake at 375F deg. for 45 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.
Scoop into bowls and pour a bit of cream over top if you wish.

Lazy Black Berry-Peach 'Pie'

Posted by admin

Making the batter is as simple as 1...2....3.

Then, fold in your peaches be they fresh, frozen or canned.

Pour into your baking dish.

Sprinkle some black berries over the top. I had about twice this much before a very curious 2 year old grabbed the cup of berries sitting on the counter and dumped half of them on the floor.

Sabotage I tell you!

Bake for 45 minutes and enjoy the smell.

This is another recipe that I came up with out of necessity for a few reasons.

One. It's to stinking hot to even consider turning the stove on. The thought of it makes me tired and cranky.

Two. My budget is less than glamorous at the moment and so I'm having to get really creative with my meatless dinner recipes so as not to have a full on revolt happening. Four meat loving kids and a hungry husband can be dangerous unless I come up with something filling and flavorful for dinner.

Three. I have a big bag of barley in my pantry that has been staring at me for the last several weeks asking me why it's been neglected.

Well, necessity is the mother of invention right? And this one turned out so very good that I decided to share it with you lovely people. Barley is a whole grain and very healthy. When I think of barley my mind goes straight to barley soup made with mushrooms, carrots and maybe beef. I can't even imagine eating soup while it's 118F degrees outside so I went with my usual flawless plan; a crock pot, more veggies and a bit of fruit to sweeten it up. Bravo!

Throwing the barley and dried mushrooms (best invention ever) into the crock pot with home made chicken stock was simple and sweat free. I tossed in some summer squash and sugar snap peas, raw and threw together a simple mint vinaigrette using my cute little hydroponic mint plant really pulled this together into a sweet dinner. Even the kids liked it!

TIME 4 HOURS (CROCK POT) SERVES 6

Ingredients:

1 cup dried barley
3 cups chicken broth (preferably home made)
handful of dried mushrooms (I used shitake)
1 teaspoon salt
3 summer squash (yellow)
large handful sugar snap peas
large handful fresh blueberries
4-6 fresh strawberries, sliced
1/2 cup slivered almonds or nut of choice
chopped lettuce to serve on (I used a head of red leaf because it was cheaper)

Place barley, broth, salt and dried mushrooms in crock pot. Cook on med-high heat for about 4 hours checking after 3 hours.

Meanwhile, chop squash into small bite size pieces, slice strawberries and sugar snap peas. When barley is done spoon on top of chopped lettuce and sprinkle veggies and fruits and nuts over top. Serve with Citrus Mint Dressing. (A Strawberry Vinegraitte would be nice too)

FOR THE DRESSING

1/4 cup fresh mint leaves from your cute little indoor herb garden
1 clove garlic or shallot
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lime or orange juice depending on your fancy
1/4 cup EVOO or grape seed oil
if you prefer you could use vinegar instead of citrus. I've used both.
1/3 cup white wine or champagne vinegar

Blend all ingredients in a blender until combined. You can whisk if you'd like but I find the ingredients tend to separate much faster.

This post is linked to:

Fresh Food Friday
Seasonal Saturdays
21st Century House Wife
Tasty Tuesday's

Crock Pot Barley Pilaf with Summer Squash, Sugar Snap Peas and Fresh Berries with Citrus-Mint Dressing

Posted by admin

This post is linked to:

Fresh Food Friday
Seasonal Saturdays
21st Century House Wife
Tasty Tuesday's

This week is Teacher Appreciation Week. Yay for all of our wonderful teachers! My son Jack is in Kindergarten and his school is having a different theme each day to celebrate the teachers. Today is 'Fruit of Knowledge Day'. We made these wonderful cookies that I got from Anja's Food for Thought and just added fresh berries to the cut out flowers and butterflies. We packaged them up cute and sent them to Jack's wonderful {very patient} Kindergarten teacher Ms. G.

Teachers just don't get paid enough! I can't imagine trying to keep all those little kids quiet and focused all day long. I have a hard time doing it with just 4! Other nice ideas to give to your favorite teacher would be school supplies or a gift card to an office store. Or a gift card to a restaurant or coffee shop.

What are you doing for your favorite teacher? OR If you are a teacher what are your favorite gifts?

Tomorrow is 'Plant or Flowers Day' I came across this cute idea on Barefoot by the Sea's blog for personalizing a little plant for your teachers. It comes from Skip to my Lou. She has kindly offered a free PDF download so you can personalize these cute flower tags with your child's name and print them out.

I used shredded coconut instead of grated to make them chewier and for the

coconut to stand out more.

Coconut Almond Oat Crunchies

recipe from Anja's Food for Thought

Ingredients:

2/3 cup whole wheat flour

2/3 cup rolled oats

2/3 cup fresh grated coconut (plus more for sprinkling)

1/2 cup almonds, finely chopped

1/3 cup palm sugar (Raw sugar)

1/3 cup melted butter

2 teaspoons maple syrup or honey {*I used brown rice syrup}

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2 tablespoons boiling water

Yields 15-20

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Preheat oven to 165C/325F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, combine flour, oats, coconut, almonds and palm sugar. Set aside.

Melt the butter. Take off the heat and stir in maple syrup. Set aside.

In a small bowl or cup combine baking soda with boiling water, then add to the butter mixture. Mix wet ingredients with dry ingredients until well combined.

Press the batter into the baking sheet, about 1/2 inch thick. Sprinkle with grated coconut. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until lightly brown. Remove from the oven and cut into squares. Return crunchies into the switched-off oven, and let them dry out for another 10 minutes.

Remove from the pan, once they are cooled completely.

What is brown rice syrup?

Brown rice syrup is a vegan and gluten-free liquid sugar substitute that can be used in baking and cooking to sweeten foods with less calories and to avoid the use of refined sugar. Vegans may prefer brown rice syrup to refined sugar, which is sometimes refined using bone char from animals. With a sticky, gooey consistency similar to honey, brown rice syrup tastes very sweet, but has a flavor much different from other sweeteners, such as honey and agave nectar. It is low on the glycemic index and it is all-natural, nearly always organic, and probably one of the healthiest sugar substitutes available, with the exception of stevia.

Coconut Almond Oat Crunchies: Teacher Appreciation Week ideas and downloads.

Posted by admin

What are you doing for your favorite teacher? OR If you are a teacher what are your favorite gifts?

I used shredded coconut instead of grated to make them chewier and for the

coconut to stand out more.

Coconut Almond Oat Crunchies

recipe from Anja's Food for Thought

Ingredients:

2/3 cup whole wheat flour

2/3 cup rolled oats

2/3 cup fresh grated coconut (plus more for sprinkling)

1/2 cup almonds, finely chopped

1/3 cup palm sugar (Raw sugar)

1/3 cup melted butter

2 teaspoons maple syrup or honey {*I used brown rice syrup}

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2 tablespoons boiling water

Yields 15-20

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Preheat oven to 165C/325F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, combine flour, oats, coconut, almonds and palm sugar. Set aside.

Melt the butter. Take off the heat and stir in maple syrup. Set aside.

In a small bowl or cup combine baking soda with boiling water, then add to the butter mixture. Mix wet ingredients with dry ingredients until well combined.

Press the batter into the baking sheet, about 1/2 inch thick. Sprinkle with grated coconut. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until lightly brown. Remove from the oven and cut into squares. Return crunchies into the switched-off oven, and let them dry out for another 10 minutes.

Remove from the pan, once they are cooled completely.

Kefir is a fermented milk drink. The word kefir is said to have originated from the Turkish word "Keif" which means "good feeling". Kefir dates back many centuries to the shepherds of the Caucasus Mountains who carried kefir grains in milk stored in leather pouches where it would ferment into fizzy sour yogurt. Doesn't sound appetizing? Well actually it is! A diet of kefir grains is what's been attributed the long and healthy life of the people of the Caucasus Mountains.

What makes kefir so good for you? Inside the kefir grains are billions and billions of live beneficial bacteria.
When ingested, these bacteria literally cleans your body of bad bacteria and other harmful things that shouldn't be there. Immediately after drinking kefir you feel fresh and relaxed.

In addition to beneficial bacteria and yeast, kefir contains many vitamins, minerals, amino acids and enzymes. Particularly calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, B2 and B12, vitamin K, vitamin A and vitamin D. Tryptophan, one of the essential amino acids abundant in kefir, is well known for its relaxing effect on the nervous system.

So, how is Kefir different than the yogurt that we all know and love?

Click 'read more' below to find out!

Well, when comparing probiotics, kefir has about 5 times more friendly bacteria than yogurt. And the diversity of those beneficial bacteria are much wider than those in yogurt. Think of it as really, really smart yogurt!

Most yogurts that people buy contain a ton of sugar or artificial sweeteners, even the ones labeled 'healthy'.
Kefir is absolutely positively wonderful tasting and contains no added sugars or artificial additives.
Instead of buying those flavored yogurts or yogurt smoothies, buy some kefir next time instead!

Also, the abundance of enzymes in kefir brings more health benefits than yogurt, especially to lactose intolerant people, many of whom can tolerate kefir without difficulty, as long as the kefir is raw and not cooked (cooking destroys the enzymes). How is this possible? Kefir's beneficial yeast and bacteria provide alctase, an enzyme whic consumes most of the lactose left after the culturing process.

Unlike yogurt, kefir can help protect and repair your gut after you've taken antibiotics! I drink kefir daily as do my kiddos. I attribute this along with a diet rich if fruits and veggies to the fact that none of us get sick nearly as much as we used to, and when we do it's much less severe and short lived.

My Kefir Parfait

Some of the ways we enjoy tart, creamy and delicious kefir:

Kefir Parfait's with fresh berries and home made granola
In a banana-strawberry smoothie
I switch out my babies cow milk bottle for a bottle of kefir every day.
Straight out of the bottle for a mid-morning pick me up, Yum!

picture from Lifeway Kefir

For those of you who want to lose weight, having kefir as part of your diet could make you shave unwanted weight faster. Because kefir has probiotics, it speeds up the your body’s metabolism letting your body burn more fats and calories even if you’re only spending your normal workout time.

Amazing Health Benefits of Kefir You'll Feel Right Away:

1.Strongest natural remedy against any allergy

2.Strongest natural antibiotic without side effects

3.Treats liver disease

4.Treats gallbladder, dissolves gall bladder stones

5.Clears the body of salts, heavy metals, radionuclides, and alcoholic products

6.Cleans the body of chemical antibiotics

7.Treats kidney stones

8.Good bacteria in kefir are able to fight off pathogenic microorganisms

9.Lowers level of LDL cholesterol

10.Cleans the gastrointestinal tract

11.Irritable Bowel Syndrome

12.Treats gastritis

13.Treats pancreatitis

14.Treats ulcers

15.Prevents and treats colon cancer

16.Improves digestion

17.Improves the body functions

18.Improves the human immune system

19.Cures Candida yeast infections

20.Cures hypertension

21.Stops growth of cancer cells

22.Speeds up healing process

23.Treats psoriasis

24.Treats eczema

25.Treats inflammatory diseases

26.Reduces size of tumors

27.Treats heart disease

28.Reverses calcination of blood vessels

29.Clears the blood vessels

30.Boosts the bodies energy

31.Natural “feel good” food

32.Treats lung infections

33.Normalizes metabolism thereby can be used as for weight loss

34.Cures acne

35.Has anti-oxidants and anti-aging properties

36.Nourishes hair

37.Treats the gum disease parodontosis

38.Lessens effects of medicines

39.Replenishes body of good bacteria after antibiotic

40.Balances the microflora of the body’s digestive system

41.Regulates blood pressure

42.Lowers blood sugar

43.Lowers blood lipid levels or cholesterol and fatty acids

44.Treats diarrhea

45.Treats constipation

46.Promotes bowel movement

47.Anti-stress properties

48.Treats sleeping disorders

49.Treats depression

50.Treats attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

51.Improves the brains neuro functions like reflexes, memory retention, attention, the five senses

52.Reduces flatulence

53.Lactic acid fermentation enhances the digestibility of milk based foods. People who cannot otherwise digest milk, can enjoy the vital calcium rich Kefir.

54.Treats yeast infection

55.Eliminates vaginal odors

56.Cures wrinkles

57.Treats arthritis

58.Treats colitis

59.Treats gout

60.Cures migraines

61.Treats rheumatism

62.Treats other stomach disorders

63.Detoxifies the body

64.Improves protein quality of milk, and enhances absorption and digestion

65.Good bacteria manufacture B vitamins such as B3, B6 and folic acid.

66.Aids in treating tuberculosis

67.Treats stomach cramps

68.Treats chronic intestine infections

69.Treats liver infections

70.Treats asthma

71.Treats bronchitis

72.Treats sclerosis

73.Treats anemia

74.Treats hepatitis

75.Healing effects on catarrh, digestive nodes, astral nodes, bilious complaints

76.Treats leaky gut syndrome

77.Prevents metastasis

78.Cures bad morning breath

Think it's to good to be true?

Don't take my word for it, start drinking kefir regularly and you'll quickly see the many benefits for yourself.

So put Kefir on your grocery list right away and get feeling better!

Like this post? Love my blog? Please vote for me

{Healthy Mamma}

to be one of babble.com's Top 100 Mommy Bloggers

It would mean the world to me!

Thanks!

This post is linked to

La Bella Vita's 'Seasonal Saturday's'
Paisly Passion 'Fun with Food Friday'

Resources

Seeds of Health
Your Kefir source
Be Well Buzz

Kefir vs. Yogurt. Put This On Your Grocery List Today!

Posted by admin

So, how is Kefir different than the yogurt that we all know and love?

Click 'read more' below to find out!

My Kefir Parfait

Some of the ways we enjoy tart, creamy and delicious kefir:

Kefir Parfait's with fresh berries and home made granola
In a banana-strawberry smoothie
I switch out my babies cow milk bottle for a bottle of kefir every day.
Straight out of the bottle for a mid-morning pick me up, Yum!

picture from Lifeway Kefir

Think it's to good to be true?

Don't take my word for it, start drinking kefir regularly and you'll quickly see the many benefits for yourself.

So put Kefir on your grocery list right away and get feeling better!

Like this post? Love my blog? Please vote for me

{Healthy Mamma}

to be one of babble.com's Top 100 Mommy Bloggers

It would mean the world to me!

Thanks!

This post is linked to

La Bella Vita's 'Seasonal Saturday's'
Paisly Passion 'Fun with Food Friday'

Resources

Seeds of Health
Your Kefir source
Be Well Buzz

Why do you blog? To share stories and pictures, to journal your thoughts or travels, for a creative outlet?

I started Simply Healthy family just a few short months ago. I have always loved cooking from scratch. I love how I can create so many wonderful, savoury meals from so many cultures in my very own kitchen. I also wanted to catalogue our family's favourite recipes and maybe make a recipe book someday for me and my friends and family. Lastly, I am passionate about healthy eating and wanted to share just how easy it is to make home made, healthy meals in hopes that people will see that I have 4 children who actually eat healthy and be inspired to give healthy a try.

Those are the reasons I started this blog. In the last few months I have grown to LOVE all of the wonderful foodie sites out there and meeting some really wonderful people. Some of whom I really feel like I know and consider friends. Weird huh?

Lately, I have been cooking quite a bit from fellow foodies blogs and have come across some seriously wonderful dishes and snacks! I feel fortunate to have come across these recipes from all over the world that I would never have otherwise tried.

This brings me to my point. Stick with me....

I so appreciate that these people have taken the time and love to share their recipes, I know how much time goes into food blogging! I have read about some fellow foodie friends frustrations with people who comment without even reading the posts let alone with the intention of actually trying the recipe. If your anything like me, I really would love people to try my recipes and let me know what they think. In return, like I already mentioned, I cook at least once a week from others blogs/sites and love to let them know how wonderful it was and especially to give a "shout out" on my blog so that others can find these recipes too. I try to only post recipes on Simply Healthy Family that are "family friendly". This means, they are fairly simple, inexpensive and my kids will eat them (some days are better than others). This does NOT mean that they are bland or boring or your typical "kids foods" like chicken nuggets and mac n' cheese, I don't want to eat that crap.

So, I hope your still with me!! I usually try to keep it short so as not to lose people's attention.
THIS IS THE BEST PART OF THE POST, I PROMISE!!!
I recently came across a wonderful site with so many amazing recipes I just had to share. Joe from Eden Kitchen who shares my passion for healthy yet delicious foods and I really wanted to do a Shout Out or Guest Post or Simply Share The Love.

Fellow Foodie Friends, meet Joe. I sure hope you check out his wonderful site!

Hi there, my name is Joe Rich. Based in Auckland, New Zealand, edenkitchen.com is all about my favourite recipes and food discoveries.

I am passionate about healthy food. I love cooking with natural, whole foods and fresh produce that's in season - creating food that has real flavour and natural goodness. Thanks!

I wasn’t sure what to call this recipe. I don’t usually go for gimmicky names; I much prefer to call out the predominant or unique characteristics of a recipe and work that into the name. But these oatmeal cookies have a lot of good things I just can’t squeeze into the name. First, they’re about the healthiest cookie you can make before it really stops tasting like a cookie. I used a little maple syrup in place of cane sugar and a good dose of coconut oil, macadamias, flax seed and berries. So these cookies pack in a lot of goodness; protein from the nuts, fibre from the oats and flax seed, lauric acid from the coconut oil, and phytonutrients in the berries. Whoa! 

Then there’s the wonderful crunchiness thanks to the medley of oats, desiccated coconut, macadamias and flax seed. And finally, each cookie is bejeweled with a small handful of raspberries and black currants, giving them a lip-smackingly good berry tang. Trust me – they are as good as I’m making them sound.

So what should I call them? Macadamia Berry Oatmeal Cookies? Coconut Macadamia Berry Oatmeal Cookies? You get the idea… It just won’t all fit. So I settled on Berry Stella Cookies. I think it has a nice ring to it and seems to sum up both the flavor and the health(ier) factor. 

 Berry Stella Cookies Recipe 

My cookie cutters didn’t cut through the oats very well and made the edges crumble a little so I ended up pressing the dough into each cutter and working it into the desired shape. It is a little time consuming but gives a much better shape. If you don’t have OCD you could simply roll them into balls, flatten them a little, and be done with the cutters altogether.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour (or zentrofan fine wheat flour or all-purpose flour) 

• 1 cup desiccated coconut 

• 1 cup rolled oats 

• ½ cup macadamias 

• ¼ cup flax seeds, ground 

• ½ teaspoon fine ground sea salt 

• ¾ teaspoon baking soda 

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

• ½ cup maple syrup 

• ½ cup virgin coconut oil 

• ½ cup black currants and/or raspberries (fresh or frozen)

Preheat oven to 350°F/ 180°C. Position a rack in the upper third of the oven and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Pulse the macadamias in a food processor until they resemble coarse breadcrumbs. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, desiccated coconut, oats, macadamias, flax seed, salt and baking soda.

Add the vanilla extract, coconut oil, and maple syrup and mix until well combined. If using cookie cutters scoop 2 tablespoons of the dough into each cutter following the instructions above. Otherwise simply roll the scooped dough into balls and flatten them a little.

Lightly press and small handful of frozen berries onto each cookie and bake in the upper third of oven for 13-15 minutes, or until golden on top and bottom.

Makes about 20-25 cookies.

Berry Stella Cookies from Eden Kitchen!

Posted by admin

Ingredients:

• 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour (or zentrofan fine wheat flour or all-purpose flour) 

• 1 cup desiccated coconut 

• 1 cup rolled oats 

• ½ cup macadamias 

• ¼ cup flax seeds, ground 

• ½ teaspoon fine ground sea salt 

• ¾ teaspoon baking soda 

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

• ½ cup maple syrup 

• ½ cup virgin coconut oil 

• ½ cup black currants and/or raspberries (fresh or frozen)

Preheat oven to 350°F/ 180°C. Position a rack in the upper third of the oven and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Pulse the macadamias in a food processor until they resemble coarse breadcrumbs. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, desiccated coconut, oats, macadamias, flax seed, salt and baking soda.

Add the vanilla extract, coconut oil, and maple syrup and mix until well combined. If using cookie cutters scoop 2 tablespoons of the dough into each cutter following the instructions above. Otherwise simply roll the scooped dough into balls and flatten them a little.

Lightly press and small handful of frozen berries onto each cookie and bake in the upper third of oven for 13-15 minutes, or until golden on top and bottom.

Makes about 20-25 cookies.

If your anything like me, you get completely bored with breakfast every once and a while. I don't like to give the kids cold cereal very often because most all of them are laden with sugar and processed flour. Also, if you could see how much these 3 boys eat you would know that they easily scarf down a big box of cereal and well, boxed cereal is like $4 ea. That adds up fast. So that leaves the old reliable oatmeal. Even though we doll it up with pecans, flax, honey and dried fruit you can only eat so much oatmeal. That goes for eggs too.
Smoothies are always a fun treat and perfectly nutritious when made with healthy ingredients. You can always use plain, non-fat yogurt or Greek yogurt as a base, then add fruit of choice.

This time I used some soft Organic Tofu instead of yogurt for the protein. I freeze fresh blueberries when they are in season and chopped up frozen banana so the smoothies are nice and cold. That's it, blend it all up, add a tablespoon of flax meal for added Omega's and you have a super power breakfast smoothie!
These will wake you up and keep you energized much longer than cold cereal. Perfect breakfast for kids going to school!

Baby Mona gives her smile of approval!

Tofu-Berry Morning Smoothie

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Baby Mona gives her smile of approval!

Isn't it funny what you remember from your childhood? Things that scared you half-to-death that you laugh at now. Things that you thought you absolutely, positively couldn't live without that seem so trivial in retrospect. Small things that brought you such happiness as a child so as that they imprinted a certain magic of sorts on your soul. And when you come across them years later you are flooded with nostalgic happiness. Few things bring such memories rushing me back to my childhood and Orange Julius' are one of them. We didn't get many sweet treats when I was little. A fact that I tolerated belligerently then but appreciate greatly now. A tradition that my children have begrudgingly been placed upon. Once or Twice a month at most my healthy conscience, and looking back budget conscience mother packed all four of us up and we went to the market or the mall for a sweet treat.

Orange Julius' were my absolute favorite, hands down. I could hardly contain myself as we stood in the always endlessly long line waiting for our Icy, sweet Julius treat. It's funny, back then I thought they were good for you, they were full of fruit right? Hmmmmm. Good thing I didnt' have to worry about that then.

Well , Orange Julius has long since been gone, replaced by another fad of the moment. I've been making my own various tropical smoothies and juices for my family for special treats and had all but forgotten about Orange Julius'. Then, last week, my mom handed me what I thought was our usual mixed berry-yogurt smoothie. I took a sip........ and schazaaaam, was blasted into my childhood via my taste buds!

What was this magical concoction that has eluded me all these years? This simple recipe that brings back memories of happiness and childhood bliss. I'll tell you, and only because not only is it tear inducing delicious, but contains NO sugar! This may not mean much to you if you've never had a sugar-laden Orange Julius, but let me tell you, it's BIG TIME!

Berry-Orange Julius Smoothie

1 cup mixed frozen berries

2 cups non-fat, plain yogurt

1 ripe banana

1 tablespoon Flax Meal ( ground, toasted flax seed)

3 small pieces frozen orange peel

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Combine all ingredients in blender and blend on high till smooth. That's it! Simple, yummy happiness!!

Frozen orange peel is the key ingredient, vanilla too I guess. I've been giving my mom a hard time for peeling and saving orange peels. She gives a small amount of them to my kids as snacks occasionally and boasts that they contain super levels of vitamin C and antioxidants, only found in the peel. My little ones chomp them up to my amazement and now they have found an even greater purpose as far as I'm concerned!

Berry-Orange Julius Smoothie

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Combine all ingredients in blender and blend on high till smooth. That's it! Simple, yummy happiness!!

I like to play with my food. Which should come as no surprise since I like everything about food, cooking it, thinking about it, taking pictures of it and of course eating it! My kids like playing with their food too, I'm a little odd in that I think that's just fine as long as they eat it. I love to hang out in the kitchen with my kiddos and teach them all about food. While we cook our meals together, we talk about where food came from and which foods are healthy and how they help our bodies be strong.
It's so rewarding to hear my 5 year old tell his 13 month old sister that cheese will help her bones be strong and that he didn't use to like avocados but he does now so she should eat them up! I love it!!

I discovered this yummy breakfast/snack out of necessity. It was a grocery shopping day and all we were out of cereal, oats, eggs and milk. Hmmm, what's for breakfast? We had a loaf of sprouted grain bread and a bit of ricotta cheese left over in the fridge. I toasted the bread and spread on the ricotta. I clipped some parsley from my window herb garden and sliced up some fresh, warm tomatoes ( no fruit that morning either). A bit of seasoning salt and cracked pepper to finish it off and it was Delicious!

I couldn't stop thinking about how I wanted it again the next morning and thought the kids would enjoy some fruit on theirs too. They ate the tomatoes but not the parsley. Anyway, the idea of a tic-tac-toe toast was spur of the moment and Oh-so-fun!

I simply hulled and pureed the strawberries with my hand-held emersion blender, No Sugar necessary. I put the pureed strawberries into a Ziploc baggie and cut an itty bitty tip of the corner off so I could draw the lines onto the toast. Use whatever fruit you have on hand for your game pieces.
Drizzle with honey and sprinkle with nuts if you so desire, but most importantly.... Don't forget to Play with your food! ;-)

I wanted mine with mandarin orange segments, sliced almonds and a bit of honey.

Use sprouted bread or whole grain bread rather than whole wheat or white. I like Ezekiel brand sprouted breads, they are really yummy and of course good for you. Another complete protein!

Inspired by the Holy Scripture verse Ezekiel 4:9., "Take also unto thee Wheat, and Barley, and beans, and lentils, and millet, and Spelt, and put them in one vessel, and make bread of it..."

Ezekiel 4:9® Organic Sprouted Whole Grain Products are:
Flourless,
Organic,
Complete Protein,
and Sprouted Whole Grain

When these six grains and legumes are sprouted and combined, an amazing thing happens.

A complete protein is created that closely parallels the protein found in milk and eggs. In fact, the protein quality is so high, that it is 84.3% as efficient as the highest recognized source of protein, containing all 9 essential amino acids. There are 18 amino acids present in this unique bread – from all vegetable sources – naturally balanced in nature.

Ezekiel 4:9® Bread, made from freshly sprouted organically grown grains, is naturally flavorful and bursting with nutrients. Rich in protein, vitamins, minerals and natural fiber with no added fat. Try it served warm to release its exceptionally rich nutty flavor.

Tic-Tac-Toe Ricotta Toast or Mandarin, Almond and Honey

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I wanted mine with mandarin orange segments, sliced almonds and a bit of honey.

Use sprouted bread or whole grain bread rather than whole wheat or white. I like Ezekiel brand sprouted breads, they are really yummy and of course good for you. Another complete protein!

Inspired by the Holy Scripture verse Ezekiel 4:9., "Take also unto thee Wheat, and Barley, and beans, and lentils, and millet, and Spelt, and put them in one vessel, and make bread of it..."

Ezekiel 4:9® Organic Sprouted Whole Grain Products are:
Flourless,
Organic,
Complete Protein,
and Sprouted Whole Grain

When these six grains and legumes are sprouted and combined, an amazing thing happens.

Watermelon is in season and so sweet right now! You can pick up a huge seedless super sweet watermelon like this one for around $2 right now!! We had this for the 4th of July BBQ at our house this year. Not only is it pretty, but so good for you.

Simply cut the top 1/3 of the watermelon off lengthwise. Set the smaller half aside, slice the inside of the bigger half into small squares. Using your fingers, pluck out the watermelon pieces and chop into bite size.
Put into a big bowl. Mix with 1 pint of fresh, washed blueberries and 2 cups of fresh, diced coconut. We crack our coconuts open with a screwdriver then carefully cut out small chunks. Make sure you save the coconut water!!!! We usually just drink it straight out of the coconut, it's sooooooo refreshing! You can also mix it with any other fruit for a simple juice. Refridgerate it in a sealed container if you don't use it immediatley.

Did You Know?....

Health and Nutition Benefits of Coconut

* Coconut is highly nutritious, not only is high in protein but rich in fiber, vitamins, and minerals. It is classified as a "functional food" because it provides many health benefits beyond its nutritional content. Coconut oil is of special interest because it possesses healing properties far beyond that of any other dietary oil and is extensively used in traditional medicine among Asian and Pacific populations.

Coconut In Modern Medicine

Modern medical science is now confirming the use of coconut in treating many of the above conditions. Published studies in medical journals show that coconut, in one form or another, may provide a wide range of health benefits. Some of these are summarized below:

This is a pretty impressive list !!!

Kills viruses that cause influenza, herpes, measles, hepatitis C, SARS, AIDS, and other illnesses.

Kills bacteria that cause ulcers, throat infections, urinary tract infections, gum disease and cavities, pneumonia, and gonorrhea, and other diseases.

Kills fungi and yeasts that cause candidiasis, ringworm, athlete's foot, thrush, diaper rash, and other infections.

Expels or kills tapeworms, lice, giardia, and other parasites.

Provides a nutritional source of quick energy.

Boosts energy and endurance, enhancing physical and athletic performance.

Improves digestion and absorption of other nutrients including vitamins, minerals, and amino acids.

Improves insulin secretion and utilization of blood glucose.

Relieves stress on pancreas and enzyme systems of the body.

Reduces symptoms associated with pancreatitis.

Helps relieve symptoms and reduce health risks associated with diabetes.

Reduces problems associated with malabsorption syndrome and cystic fibrosis.

Improves calcium and magnesium absorption and supports the development of strong bones and teeth.

Helps protect against osteoporosis.

Helps relieve symptoms associated with gallbladder disease.

Relieves symptoms associated with Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, and stomach ulcers.

Improves digestion and bowel function.

Relieves pain and irritation caused by hemorrhoids.

Reduces inflammation.

Supports tissue healing and repair.

Supports and aids immune system function.

Helps protect the body from breast, colon, and other cancers.

Is heart healthy; improves cholesterol ratio reducing risk of heart disease.

Protects arteries from injury that causes atherosclerosis and thus protects against heart disease.

Helps prevent periodontal disease and tooth decay.

Functions as a protective antioxidant.

Helps to protect the body from harmful free radicals that promote premature aging and degenerative disease.

Does not deplete the body's antioxidant reserves like other oils do.

Improves utilization of essential fatty acids and protects them from oxidation.

Helps relieve symptoms associated with chronic fatigue syndrome.

Relieves symptoms associated with benign prostatic hyperplasia (prostate enlargement).

Reduces epileptic seizures.

Helps protect against kidney disease and bladder infections.

Dissolves kidney stones.

Helps prevent liver disease.

Is lower in calories than all other fats.

Supports thyroid function.

Promotes loss of excess weight by increasing metabolic rate.

Is utilized by the body to produce energy in preference to being stored as body fat like other dietary fats.

Helps prevent obesity and overweight problems.

Applied topically helps to form a chemical barrier on the skin to ward of infection.

Reduces symptoms associated the psoriasis, eczema, and dermatitis.

Supports the natural chemical balance of the skin.

Softens skin and helps relieve dryness and flaking.

Prevents wrinkles, sagging skin, and age spots.

Promotes healthy looking hair and complexion.

Provides protection form damaging effects of ultraviolet radiation form the sun.

Helps control dandruff.

***Does not form harmful by-products when heated to normal cooking temperature like other vegetable oils do.

Who needs all the beauty products and OTC medicines out there when you have super foods in your everyday diet?!?!

the coconut research center

Watermelon Boat with Blueberries and Fresh Coconut Chunks

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Did You Know?....

Health and Nutition Benefits of Coconut

Coconut In Modern Medicine

This is a pretty impressive list !!!

Who needs all the beauty products and OTC medicines out there when you have super foods in your everyday diet?!?!

the coconut research center

This was probly one of the best cakes I have ever had! I have only recently been attempting to bake gluten free ( most of the time) It has been a rocky journey. So far, I have yet to make a GF loaf of bread that doesn't weigh as much as a brick or crumble apart when you touch it. *sighhhh I am not a big bread lover anyway so decided I would only make a couple of loaves of bread a month and stick with the oatmeal bread recipe I have and love. My mom has developed a serious gluten allergy and I have heard for quite some time about the health dangers involved with gluten. It's everywhere and in much higher concentrations than in the recent past.

Anyway.... this cake was SO GOOD! I altered the recipe my mom gave me only slightly by usuing 2 less eggs & half cocnut flour and half white rice flour. It was perfect, you could taste the coconut but it wasn't overly coconutty (yes that's a word....) I was so happy that it turned out super moist and not to sweet. I don't like frosting... too sweet, so I blended triple berry preserves with fresh strawberries and swirled it into the cake batter, YUMMM! I wanted a simple American Flag Cake so only used a few lines of berries but next time I will definatley be using more berries! After it was cooked and cooled, I dusted it with just a little powdered sugar and sprinkled it with unsweetened coconut flakes. So good.

You Will Need:

2-1/2 sticks butter, softened
1-1/3 c organic (raw) sugar
8 large eggs, room temp
1 c coconut flour, sifted
1 c white rice flour
2 t baking powder
1/4 t sea salt
1-1/3 c + 1 T milk
1 T vanilla
Coconut oil

optional:
fresh blueberries or other berries
1/4 cup unsweetend coconut flakes
3 tbsp powdered sugar

for the strawberry swirl:
1/2 cup organic berry compote
1 cup fresh, hulled strawberries
Put in a bowl and with an emersion blender pulse a few times till blended ( mini food processor workst too)

Putting it all together:

     Preheat oven to 350 degrees. With pastry brush, grease two round 8-9" or one 9x13" cake pans with coconut oil and dust with coconut flour.
     In bowl of electric mixe fitted with whisk attachment, beat butter and sugar together about 5 minutes on medium high speed, til light and fluffy, scraping bowl occasionally. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition.
     In separate bowl, combine all dry ingredients together. Add vanilla to milk. With mixer on low speed, add flour and milk to butter-egg mixture, scraping bowl when needed. When all the milk and flour mixture is used up, bat cake batter about 5 minutes, til the color is a bit lighter and batter is light and fluffy.
     Spoon batter into prepared cake pan(s) and smooth out tops. Bake in oven 30-35 minutes, or til toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean.
     Place cake pans on wire rack and let cool 5 minutes in the pan. Run a butter knife along edges of cake before removing from pan.

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